Forgive me for making this short, I just wrote out a long post and hit submit, but it took so long that I was logged out of the site when I clicked submit. Man I was pissed!

Basicly, I really enjoy my Honda Fit so far and the features are luxurious compared to my last vehicle (2008 Wrangler). I really enjoy getting great MPG and although its distracting, I like trying keep my MPG gauge as high as possible.

Is the MPG gauge in the Stock Fit Sport model accurate?

I'm looking to tint my windows, what's the best looking %?

I'm in New Jersey and tint is illegal on the front driver side and passenger windows, but I'm going to be doing a light tint anyway.

Does it look weird if the rear windows are a different tint % than the front driver and passenger windows?

Does it hurt my vehicle by shutting off the engine at a stop light and starting it back up when the light turns green?

I have an automatic trans, does it hurt the vehicle if I shift to nuetral to coast down a hill?

In what situations is the paddle shifter useful other than driving up a steep hill or accelerating from a stand still on slick road?

What is the best tire pressure to maximize MPG?

Right now I'm averaging 32 MPG, at that rate it looks I'm going to use about 3/4 of my fuel after 270 miles.

Looks like thats all I can remember from my post earlier, sorry for the long list of questions but any input would be greatly appreciated!

 

Does it hurt my vehicle by shutting off the engine at a stop light and starting it back up when the light turns green?
Each time you start the car there's more wear on the engine because there's no oil circulating. Of course if you'd just shut it off there would still be a pretty good coating of oil on things anyway. But it's almost pointless and also illegal to shut your engine off on the road.

I have an automatic trans, does it hurt the vehicle if I shift to nuetral to coast down a hill?
Won't save any fuel, if that's your aim. Also illegal...

Can't help with any of the other questions.

 

Welcome to the Forum!


All these questions have been beaten to death, resurrected and killed again.

The search feature is your friend. If you have more complicated issues than the above we would be happy to help you out!

Two I will touch on here for you as they are bad habits to get into and potentially expensive and very inconvenient to fix:

Do not shift your AT into neutral and coast, as has been pointed out this is illegal and potentially dangerous.

Do not shut down at stop lights, the car was not designed for this as some are now.

The starter, your flywheel ring gear, every single wear surface and bearing race, as well as the hydraulic pump in your transmission will hate you for it in short order. This is also illegal in some places and potentially dangerous.

Good Luck!

 

I agree.... I think I understand what happened to the Wrangler

 

Welcome to the forum PaulM!

1. Yes the mpg guage is accurate if you have a 2010 Fit but if you have the 2009 I am not sure because the '09's had the problem with the accuracy of the mg guage but it can be fixed by having it flashed at the dealer.

2. About your tint, always go legal in terms of percentage. I don't think it's worth it to be nervous all the time when you see a cop thinking that you will be pulled over because of your tint. Also what is the color of your Fit? When I had my tint, I had a black tint and it looks good on my car.

3. Tint part 2. I don't think it looks weird when the front is lighter and the rear windows are darker. But that is just my opinion.

4. Not sure how bad it can hurt your car when shutting the engine at stop lights. I was doing it but I now lost my patience and always leave my engine one all the time.

5. I think it will hurt your tranny when you put the shifter to neutral position while coasting.

6. I can't answer because my Fit is manual and have never driven an automatic Fit on a daily basis.

7. I would suggest 40psi on all tires to get better gas mileage.

8. 270 miles on a 3/4 tank? I don't know really because you have an automatic. When I was driving consevatively on my GD3 Fit. I was able to pull about 486 miles with 10.5xx(not sure about the exact figure on .5xx) refill. Right now I'm driving the Fit in a regular driving, I think I am at that figure when I reach 3/4 of a tank use of gas. Between 270-290miles. I have a manual GD3 though so your figure would be different.

 

I never even heard of shutting off your engine to save gas until I read this site, so thats why I questioned it.

Same with shifting to neutral while coasting, didn't seem like a good idea.

Thanks for the input so far, I will continue looking with the search button.

 

FYI, the 2010 Fit may be "more" accurate than the 2009, but it is still off. Mine varies from 1/2 to a full mpg off.

That being said, if you're that concerned, it would be better doing it the old fashion way pen/paper and over multiple tanks.

 

I think I'm getting the wrong impression from my excessive amount of questions. I REALLY like the Fit so far and I believe I made the right decision in getting this vehicle. I'm just interested in hearing from experienced fit owners and gain more knowledge of the fit.

 

getting or giving?

I thoroughly enjoy using my Fit... and I offer to give my friends rides any chance I get, and I remind them, "any excuse to drive is good enough for me!"

But, I'm always curious what's out there that can benefit me. Take the other thread on the engine dampener... would it help me? Would I notice the benefit it gives. Do I pay enough attention to notice? etc.

 

Not sure how asking questions in a public forum gives such an unwelcoming impression. After all, I thought forums like this one were for the purpose of asking questions and exchanging ideas, techniques, etc. I even said Thanks in advanced.

 

Actually auto forums are usually used as an archive, and less like "ask jeeves" or facebook.

A couple of the question you asked in your initial post were personal preference, which we cannot answer for you, like whether or not a combination of tints look "weird."

The others could have been answered for you with a little time using the search function.

But like I said if you have a unique problem, there are many people here who know their **** and would enjoy helping if you can give us feedback and answer what we ask.

Many people here, probably myself included have become jaded over time because of folks, new and old, who use txtspeak or ask crap like if there windshield wiper issues are related to their brake pedal and crap like that.

While we should probably just ignore those and move on, the sheer volume of these posts/threads gets tiresome and makes it harder to search the forum for good information. So some of us, being that this is a public forum, sometimes say what we feel, right or wrong.

This is one of those threads. No offense, nothing personal.

Again if there is something you cannot find here, in the manual, the dealership or google we would love to help.

If there is something you cannot find on any of the above, but still want clarification and don't want to be mocked or made fun of because you feel it might be "stupid," PM me. Sometimes it takes a day or two for me to get through everything in the inbox though, but I will answer!

Cheers,
Chris

 

I agree and understand where you are coming from. I'm an experienced member of many different online forums. And being that I do know that it's fustrating for regular forum members when a "newbie" comes along and asks a redundant question. I know better and to use the search function is an effective tool to find what you're looking for. I guess I just got caught up acting like a little kid and was too antsy and excited with my new car.
On the contrary, it could have been quickly addressed by considerately reminding me to use the search function. As I was unaware that the questions asked were so frequent.

As for some of my questions, I was fustrated that I spent 10 mins on a post that got lost because I was not logged in any longer. Being that i was rushing, some questions were not worded properly and did not read like I ment them to. I didn't know it was such a common occurance to have different shades of tint on vehicles. Tint is something that I usually overlook on a vehicle unless it's really dark.

Auto forums being more like an archive rather than an "ask jeeves" type tool. I disagree. Maybe in a perfect forum, where it's strictly monitored by admins and you have to be approved by an admin before your post shows up. If you look at the General Fit Forum section for example, most topics posted on the front page are users looking to other users for help and advice on their problem.

I'm sure I will have many more questions. I'm not worried about asking a "dumb" question because I don't think there is one when it comes to certain subjects. You may have a lot of knowledge and experience with cars, tint and vehicle modifications but a lot of people don't. I consider myself to have a decent amount of common sense in most subjects. But when it comes to cars, I don't know shit. Aside from changing a tire. It's not a hobby, I dont like cars other than my own. Same goes for anything else, being that I am in Law Enforcement and I have a large knowledge of useless laws and procedures. Simple things that people do everyday but are unaware that are illegal. Such as ..throwing a cigarette out the window is a violation, your air freshener hanging on your rear view mirror is a violation, your license plate holder is a violation. Those are all minor, stupid, silly violations you could be pulled over for in the state of New Jersey.

 

Well put, and you make some good points. Everybody has different interests and hobbies. It'd be pretty boring if we all knew the same stuff. It sounds like there is plenty you could teach me as well as I'm sure plenty of it would be applicable in Illinois.

We all have to start somewhere.

I am used to much stricter forums, this is currently the only public forum I am on and is kind of refreshing from the grumpy old bastards who've been to hell and back again on seemingly everything under the sun and are too happy to give you an earful or just ban you for it.

This a great community overall. The mods here are actually pretty cool, seemingly non-existent actually. I have lurked here on and off since 2007, bought my GD3 Sport in early '08 and finally decided to sign up a couple months ago. I have met some really cool people. Have bought and sold a couple items through vendors and members with (so far) no issues.

Which is at least better than my experiences with fleaBay.

The Fit as you've found is a lot of fun for what it is! In OE trim, the way it handles and for what it can carry, you'd be hard pressed to do better.

 

I asked the getting vs giving question, because you said it was because of your questions, not because of the responses.

 

**************************************
Who said freaks don't have answers or opinions. PaulM welcome to the freakworld, it's a dime a dozen place with some really good folks who will help you at the drop of the hat..... some think it's a starved social group of miss-FIT's, stick around long enough and you'll be convinced!!!

K_C_

 

Thank you to those of you who have contributed in helping me with those questions. I think i'm going to go with 50% Front / 45% back / 20% rear tint. Again, I know there is an endless amount of knowledge on here and I didn't mean to start off on the wrong foot.

 

Just saying, but quoting long posts time and time again make it even worse.
As for tint check the sticky in the interior section for pics of all kinds. Alot of people stagger tint.
Paddles are great. They allow you to drive a manuel without a clutch.
All other questions: dont do it.
Your welcome.